Energy Fact Sheet
Petroleum
What is Petroleum?
Petroleum is a fossil fuel. It is called a fossil fuel because it was formed from the remains of tiny sea plants and animals that died millions of years ago.
When the plants and animals died, they sank to the bottom of the oceans. Here, they were buried by thousands of feet of sand and silt. As the layers increased, they pressed harder and harder on the decayed remains at the bottom. The heat and pressure changed the remains, and eventually, petroleum was formed.
Petroleum deposits are locked in porous rocks almost like water is trapped in a wet household sponge. When crude oil comes out of the ground, it may be as thin as gasoline or as thick as tar.
Petroleum is called a nonrenewable energy source because it takes millions of years to form. We cannot make new petroleum reserves. Petroleum is often called "crude oil," or "oil."
History of Oil
People have used petroleum since ancient times. The ancient Chinese and Egyptians burned oil for lighting their homes.
Before the 1 850s, Americans used whale oil to light their homes. When whale oil became scarce, people skimmed the oil that seeped to the surface of ponds and streams. The demand for oil grew, and in 1859, Edwin Drake drilled the first oil well near Titusville, Pennsylvania.
At first, the crude oil was refined or made into kerosene for lighting. Gasoline and other products made during refining were thrown away because people had no use for them. This all changed when Frank and Charles Duryea built the first American gasoline-powered automobile in 1892. Today, Americans use petroleum more than any other energy source, and most of it is used for transportation.
Producing Oil
Geologists look at the type of rocks and the way they are arranged deep within the earth to determine whether oil is likely to be found at a location. Still, oil exploration is expensive and often unsuccessful. Of every 100 new wells drilled, only about 33 produce oil.
When oil is found, a petroleum company brings in a drilling rig and raises an oil derrick that houses the tools and pipes that go into the well. The typical oil well is about one mile deep. A pump moves the oil through a pipe to the surface.
Texas produces more oil than any other state. Texas is followed by Alaska, California, Louisiana, and Oklahoma—in that order.
From Well to Market
We cannot use crude oil in the state it's in when it comes out of the ground. So, how does black crude oil come out of the ground and eventually get in your car as a thin, amber-colored liquid called gasoline? Let's find out.
Oil Refineries
Oil's first stop outside the well is an oil refinery. A refinery is a factory that processes oil. An oil refinery cleans and separates the crude oil into various fuels and products. The most important one is gasoline. Some other petroleum products are diesel fuel, heating oil, and jet fuel.
Shipping Petroleum
After the refinery, most petroleum products are shipped out through pipelines. There are about 230,000 miles of underground pipelines in the United States. Pipelines are the safest and cheapest way to move big shipments of petroleum across land. It takes about 15 days to move a shipment of gasoline from Houston, Texas to New York City.
Selling Petroleum
Special companies called "jobbers" buy petroleum products from oil companies and sell them to gasoline stations and to other big users such as industries, electric utility companies, and farmers. The story ends when you pump gasoline into your car's tank, and the engine converts gasoline's heat energy into mechanical energy to make your car move.
Oil and the Environment
Petroleum products—gasoline for cars, medicines, fertilizers, and so on—have helped people all over the world. But there is a flipside. Petroleum production and petroleum products may cause air and water pollution. Drilling for oil may disturb fragile land and ocean environments. Transporting oil may endanger wildlife if it's spilled on rivers and oceans. Burning gasoline to fuel our cars pollutes the air. Even the careless disposal of waste oil drained from the family car can pollute streams and rivers.
The situation is getting better though. Oil companies have cleaned up their refineries. Gasolines and heating oils have been changed to burn cleaner. And oil companies are making sure that the drilling and shipping of oil are done as safely as possible.
Petroleum Products
Ink, Heart valves, Crayons, Parachutes, Telephones, Enamel, Antiseptics, Purses, Deodorant, Pantyhose, Oil filters, Pajamas, Cassettes, Fishing rods, Electncal tape, Floor wax, Tires, Umbrellas, Hand lotion, Toothbrushes, Toothpaste, Guitar strings, Loudspeakers, Movie film, Aspirin, Sunglasses, Glue, Artificial limbs, Ballpoint pens, Golf balls, Contact lenses, Dice, Trash bags, Shampoo, Cameras, Dentures, Nail polish, Dashboards, Luggage, LP records, Balloons, Paint brushes, Footballs, Dyes, Antihistamines, Skis, Perfumes, Shoe polish, Fertilizers, Insecticides, Cold cream, Detergents.
0il Reserves
United States
3%
world oil reserves
Saudl Arabla
27%
world oil reserves
When scientists talk about how much oil, coal, or natural gas the United States has, they use the term reserves. Oil reserves are deposits of oil still in the ground waiting to be tapped. The United States has about three percent of the world's known oil reserves. This is small in comparison to Saudi Arabia and other Middle East nations which have over 60 percent of the world's known oil.
Where is oil found in the United States? There are many areas where oil reserves are known or believed to exist. The coastal plain of northeastern Alaska and the offshore areas of Alaska, California, and Florida all look promising.
Pictures and Tables
Picture 1
What we used Petroleum for in 1994
63.8%-Transportation
26.0%-Industry
6.7%-Home and Business
2.4%-Electricity
Picture 2
-Petroleum began as prehistoric sea animals died and were buried on the ocean floor.
-Over millions of years, the animal remains were buried deeper in the Earth, Eventually, heat and pressure changed the remains into petroleum deposits.
-Today we drill down to rock formations that contain oil and gas.
75% is Non-production Time
